This lemon pasta recipe with grilled chicken and peppery arugula is bright, fresh, and ready in minutes! It's a delicious, satisfying weeknight dinner.
I love lemons and I love pasta and this recipe is my version of Italian pasta al limone. It’s creamy, buttery, and bright with citrus, and super easy to make. For added protein I added grilled chicken and an extra nutrient boost I added arugula.
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Origins of Pasta al Limone
Pasta al Limone is a classic Italian pasta dish that originates from Campania, a region surrounding the Sorrento peninsula and the Amalfi coast in Southern Italy. These areas are famous for their abundance of large lemons with high juice content. Pasta al limone is popular during the hot summer months.
While there are many variations, the basic ingredients are fresh lemons, butter or olive oil, heavy cream, cheese, and long cuts of pasta.
Ingredients
- Lemon zest and juice
- Butter and olive oil
- Cream
- Garlic
- Shallot
- Parmesan cheese
- Arugula
- Chicken breast
- Pasta
- Pasta water
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Pound and Flatten Chicken
Cover a cutting board with parchment paper or plastic wrap. Place chicken breast on the parchment paper or plastic wrap and cover with another piece of parchment or plastic wrap. Using the flat side of a mallet or heavy frying pan pound the chicken breast using short strokes starting with the thickest part of the breast working your way toward the edge. Flip the breast and repeat. Continue pounding until the chicken breast is ½ to ¼ inch thick.
Season Chicken
Remove the top layer of the parchment or plastic wrap and season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken, cover and set aside.
Grill Chicken
Heat a grill pan to high heat for about 2-3 minutes. Lower the heat to medium-high and brush a bit of oil on the pan and make sure the entire pan is coated with oil.
Add the chicken breasts to the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes on the first side without moving, until the undersides develop dark grill marks. Flip the chicken breasts using a pair of tongs or a fork and cook the other side for another 5-6 minutes. Remove from pan, wrap in foil and set aside in a warm oven.
Cook Pasta
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook pasta according to package instructions, reducing the cooking time by 2 minutes to assure that the pasta is al dente before adding to the sauce.
Sauté Shallots and Garlic
While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil and 1 tablespoon of butter to the skillet. When the butter is all melted, add the shallots and sauté 1-2 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté 1 minute.
Combine Butter and Cream
Add the remaining butter to the skillet, when the butter has melted, slowly pour in the cream, whisking until the sauce emulsifies, about 2 ½ minutes.
Add the lemon zest to the sauce and stir to combine.
Toss Cooked Pasta in Sauce
Drain the pasta, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water. Add the pasta, lemon juice and 1 cup of the pasta water to the sauce, stirring to combine and coat the pasta.
Stir in Cheese
Sprinkle the cheese into the pasta and stir as it melts and coats the pasta. If pasta is too dry add a bit of the pasta water to thin the sauce.
Slice Chicken
Remove the chicken from the warm oven and slice.
Chop Arugula
Rough chop the arugula.
Plate and Serve Pasta
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Transfer pasta from the skillet to serving bowls and add slices of the grilled chicken and chopped arugula to the top of the pasta. Sprinkle with cheese and serve.
Top Recipe Tips
- Use fresh lemons for this recipe, no bottled juice. Lemons are the star of this dish, so fresh is best.
- If your sauce is too thick, add more pasta water to thin it out.
How To Serve
This pasta should be served soon after it’s made. Some crusty bread pairs well with this pasta dish.
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Substitutions and Variations
Chicken Breast: Instead of using chicken breast you can use boneless chicken thighs.
Butter: You can skip the butter and just use olive oil and pasta water to create a silky sauce.
Cream: Half and half is a good swap for the cream. If you use milk your sauce may not stay emulsified when you add the lemon juice.
Shallots: An easy swap for shallots are onions.
Cheese: Pecorino Romano can be used in place of Parmesan Reggiano
Arugula: Spinach can be used in place of Arugula or whatever green you want to use.
How To Store Leftovers
How to Store: This pasta dish is best just after it is made and in my home we don’t have any leftovers. But if you have any leftovers, store your leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Consume within 4 days.
How to Reheat: When ready to eat, reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop. Add a bit of water to loosen the sauce if needed.
FAQ
No, you can omit them both. The
combination of olive oil, starchy pasta water,
and cheese will create a silky sauce.
To make this dish vegetarian, skip the grilled chicken. For a vegan version, leave out the butter and cream.
You can easily trade the grilled chicken for shrimp or meatballs.
Ingredients
Batter
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1 egg at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons half and half or milk
- ¼ cup butter melted
- ¼ cup canola oil
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice You will need 1 large lemon or 2 small lemons for the entire recipe
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 ½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries
Crumble Mix
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Cream Cheese Topping
- 4 oz. Cream cheese
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- Prepare the baking pan and the oven: Cut a strip of parchment paper measuring 16 ½ inches long and wide enough to line the bottom of a 9x9 baking pan. Place the parchment in the pan leaving 2 inches of overhang. This makes it easier to lift the cake out of the pan later. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Make the crumb topping: Combine the flour, brown sugar, melted butter and lemon zest in a small bowl. Cover and set aside.
- Combine the dry ingredients: Using a medium sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk (affiliate link) to combine. Set aside.
- Combine the wet into the dry ingredients: Add the dry ingredients to the wet in batches. Add ⅓ of the flour mixture to the wet and fold using a flexible spatula. When most of the flour has been incorporated, add half of the remaining flour mixture, fold again, then add the remaining flour and fold until there is no more dry flour. Your batter should be light and fluffy.
- Assemble - Spoon half the batter into the pan and spread on the bottom of the pan, and
- sprinkle half of the crumble mixture over the batter.
- Top the crumble layer with the blueberries. If you are using frozen blueberries don’t thaw them. Keep them frozen until you are ready to layer them in your batter.
- Spoon the remaining batter over the blueberries and spread evenly, then sprinkle the remaining crumble over the top of the batter.
- Bake the cake in the middle of the oven for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the cake springs back when you touch the top.
- Make the cream topping: While the cake is baking in the oven, use a small bowl to whisk (affiliate link) all of the cream topping ingredients together until smooth and creamy. (Depending on the temperature of your kitchen, you may need to microwave your cream cheese for a few seconds to soften before adding the remaining ingredients.) Transfer topping to a piping bag (affiliate link) or zip bag and set aside.
- Cool: Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Once the cake has cooled, use the parchment paper to lift the cake out of the pan and place on a cutting board or other flat surface.
- Top cake with cream topping: Spread or drizzle the cream topping over the top of the cake using a piping bag (affiliate link) or a zip bag with a corner of the bag cut.
- Serve:Slice the cake into 16 squares and serve at room temperature or slightly warm.
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